The springtime ritual of shuffling through papers to file a tax return may be reaching an end.

Many United States federal courts have already instituted e-filing, a system which includes the ability to access court records via the internet. E-filing could soon become commonplace in Michigan, as governor Rick Snyder signed legislation in December of 2013 that allows courts to do away with paper and begin processing files electronically. At present, individual courts may implement e-filing as they see fit.

E-filing is becoming increasingly popular with taxpayers. According to IRS.gov, 120 million taxpayers filed taxes electronically last year. Since 1990, taxpayers have filed more than one billion Form 1040 series tax returns.

The IRS reports that refunds are issued twice as fast for e-filed returns, 93 percent of which are issued in under 30 days.

Unfortunately, a lack of funding and uniformity will slow the local trend. But with further advancements in the digital age, e-filing will likely continue to change in the legal system.